Vintage box cutter?

[Papaw]

I bought this at Dowd's sale Saturday as a project. It looks to be a box cutter with phenolic or bakelite scales and a blade that can be replaced or even extended.
I am going to take it apart, find a suitable blade, clean it up, and refurbish it. This kind of project is therapy for me.

[couchspring]

mill knife.

[Papaw]

Thanks! That is it exactly, now I have something to go by in redoing it.

[mrchuck]

It has to be a mill knife! And I don't really know what a "mill knife" is!
I held it and it is really heavy and solid, and nothing slides in or out.
Lots of steel or bronze in it. Big hefty screws.  And the blade is not one of those replaceable, slide in and out razor blades.

[Papaw]

I have the blade out, it is a replaceable blade with a notch in it that doesn't match the set screw. I am soaking it all right now to see if I can get the other screws out. I know I can buy a new blade, but I may just use the one there, or repurpose another. This might be the chance to try out my "new to me" belt sander Mrchuck was kind enough to send home with me Saturday!

[Papaw]

I have removed the scales, had to break them since the screws were rusted tight. After they came off, I was able to remove the screws with a trusty set of Crescent pliers off my Crescent display.
The knife is now in a vinegar bath for a while.

[mrchuck]

I've never seen a replacement blade like that with only 1 blade. The ones I see have 2 blades.

[Papaw]

The knife is made in such a way that it could have a blade on each end.

[mrchuck]

I remember just how very heavy it was,,, like heavier than a"roll" of nickels I found on perps, which was ok to have in your pocket, versus brass knuckles which carrying was a Class A felony.
I want to see it after you have "Papaw-ized" it.

[Aunt Phil]

The notching on that blade looks similar to the blade of an Allway saw blade.

[Papaw]

Here is the mill knife after 8 hours in household vinegar, a quick swipe or three with a stainless hand brush, and a wash in warm soapy water.
The notch in the blade does not match the set screw, so I suppose it is not original.

[scottg]

I never saw this exact pattern before.
A new blade should be reasonable enough to make.
What are you going to use for the new scales?
yours Scott

[Papaw]

I have plenty of red cedar from a tree at my son's place that was felled by Hurricane Ike. 64longstep has used some of it on our PHakes, and I think I can work with it with little trouble. There won't be any weird cuts to make, fairly straightforward. I will use the original screws if I can clean them up enough. A good fit, some sanding, and a finish probably with linseed oil and Johnson's Wax. This is just a project for me, no collector's item.

[Papaw]

I changed my mind on the wood. I have a bunch of cedar from a tree my mother and I brought back from Arkansas 40 years ago to use as a live Christmas tree. We went to Arkansas the year after my father died to their cabin in the Ozarks.
My father had brought home a live tree each year for each of us five kids, so we brought one home for him.
This tree was always poorly and ugly, and Ike and lightning had damaged it so much that I had to fell it last year. I saved several large pieces of the trunk and some branches.
I rough cut some scales on my bandsaw and drilled the holes with a nice Stanley Yankee No. 41Y. I'll finish the scales with a carving set.

[couchspring]

you can get a new blade from HYDE,they make them in several styles.